A day after N. Korea threatened to call off the June 12 summit with the U.S., an official at the South's presidential Blue House said that Seoul wants to play “the role of a mediator” between the two sides.

N. Korean leader Kim Jong-un and his S. Korean counterpart Moon Jae-in pledged to “write a new chapter” in history as they held a landmark summit, aimed at restoring peace between the two nations, technically still at war.

South Korea’s former President Park Geun-hye has been awarded a 24-year jail sentence after the court found her guilty of 16 out of 18 charges, most of them related to corruption, bribery and abuse of power.

At least 37 people were killed and 70 others injured after a deadly fire broke out at Sejong Hospital in the south-eastern city of Miryang, raising concerns on the safety standards in one of the world’s leading economies.

South Korea’s President Moon Jae-in credited his American counterpart for creating a political environment, through sanctions and pressure on the North, which led to historic inter-Korean talks this week.